Did Biden’s Uncle Get Eaten by Cannibals During World War II?
Summary from the AllSides News Team
President Biden visited a World War II memorial in Pennsylvania this week, where he claimed that during the war, his uncle’s plane was shot down over a region of Papua New Guinea inhabited by cannibals. This claim contradicted military records and drew criticism from Papua New Guinea.
Key Quotes: Biden stated, “[H]e got shot down in New Guinea, and they never found the body because there used to be a lot of cannibals, for real, in that part of the New Guinea.” The Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) quoted Maholopa Laveil, an Economics lecturer with the University of Papua New Guinea, stating, “It paints PNG in a bad light. PNG has already had a lot of negative press around riots and tribal fighting and this doesn’t help, and [the claims are] unsubstantiated.”
Details: The Philadelphia Inquirer (Lean Left bias) quoted a report on the incident from the Pentagon’s Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency that did not mention cannibals. Additionally, the report revealed that the plane was not shot down, but instead suffered an engine failure.
How The Media Covered It: The Washington Examiner stated that Biden's remarks caused "yet another diplomatic incident with the strategic Pacific nation.” The article highlights that the incident could worsen relations between Papua New Guinea and the United States. The Philadelphia Inquirer compared Biden's assertion about cannibalism to prior misrepresentations Biden has made about his family’s military background, indicating that this is part of a continuing pattern. This summary was developed with the help of AllSides' AI technology.
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Left
Biden said his uncle was shot down during WWII over an area where cannibals lived. The records disagree.
In remarks Wednesday in Scranton and Pittsburgh, President Joe Biden said his uncle was shot down during WWII over a region of New Guinea where cannibals had lived, an account not borne out by military records.
At the time, Biden had been honoring his uncle’s memory while upbraiding former President Donald Trump for calling fallen veterans “suckers and losers.”
Biden said Second Lt. Ambrose J. Finnegan Jr., known as “Uncle Bosie,” flew single-engine planes in reconnaissance flights over New Guinea for the Army Air Corps, established before the Air Force.
From the Center
Biden-Trump Gaffe Tracker: Biden Suggests Uncle Who Died In WWII Was Eaten By Cannibals
As concerns have grown that former President Donald Trump, 77, and President Joe Biden, 81, are too old to serve another term amid repeated rhetorical missteps since announcing their campaigns, here’s a list of the most notable recent gaffes.
Biden (April 17) Biden twice suggested during a visit to a Scranton, Penn., World War II memorial honoring his uncle, Ambrose Finnegan, that his body may have been eaten—by people, saying, “[H]e got shot down in New Guinea, and they never found the body because there used to be a lot...
From the Right
Papua New Guineans express outrage at Biden’s ‘very offensive’ claim about deceased uncle and cannibals
President Joe Biden is catching flak from Papua New Guinea after implying his uncle was eaten by cannibals in the country during World War II.
On Wednesday, Biden told a story of how his uncle, Ambrose Finnegan, was shot down while flying a reconnaissance mission around Papua New Guinea in World War II, crashing in an area infested with cannibals. The story contradicted all records about Finnegan’s crash, which found that he actually crashed in the ocean due to engine failure. He also claimed a new search had found pieces...
AllSides Picks
May 2nd, 2024
May 2nd, 2024
May 2nd, 2024
May 1st, 2024
More News about Joe Biden from the Left, Center and Right
From the Left
From the Center
From the Right
